


Hello World (I'm Your Wild Girl)

by ProbablyWastingTime



Category: Batman - All Media Types
Genre: Aftermath of Violence, Alternate Universe - Always a Different Sex, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Gender Changes, Bat Family, Batdad, Father-Daughter Relationship, Menstruation, Multi, Nightmares, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Rule 63, Swearing, Unreliable Narrator, Weddings, fem!Damian Wayne
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-12-22
Updated: 2016-04-09
Packaged: 2018-05-08 12:42:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,967
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5497451
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ProbablyWastingTime/pseuds/ProbablyWastingTime
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dami is eleven when she comes back to life. She doesn't understand. She remembers dying, the last struggling breaths through blood filled lungs, the stuttering of her heart beat before it gave out and the world went dark. She grips her father tight anyway.</p><p>------</p><p>A collection of one-shots, set after Dami's resurrection onwards, in an alternate universe where Damian Wayne is female.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Bye Bye, Miss American Pie

**Author's Note:**

> This is set in a universe that's an amalgamation of canon I like, ignores canon I don't like, messes with some characters personalities to suite me, and has all my little head canons squished into it.
> 
> I have another chapter in final editing, a few rough drafts and totally taking requests so tell me what you want to see in the comments!
> 
> Big thanks to Beesigh on tumblr who I have been anonymously sending head canons to for like a year now and fuels my obsessions, and to my bae for calling me 'brilliant trash' and encouraging me.

Dami is eleven when she comes back to life. It’s jarring, going from being stabbed in the chest to enveloped in her father’s arms, and her breathing is shaky. She doesn't understand. She remembers _dying_ , the last struggling breaths through blood filled lungs, the stuttering of her heart beat before it gave out and the world went dark. She grips her father tight anyway.   
  
Titus nudges at her shoulder. Bruce pulls back to let the Great Dane jump around and lick her face, but stays close with his hand on her shoulder. She slowly lifts her hand to pet Titus. She’s glad for the contact, the grounding pressure of something real _\- It can’t be real.  
  
_ “Holy Crap,” someone - two people? - says behind her and Dami finally finds her voice.   
  
“The Heretic…” She can’t gather her thoughts properly, and her last moments keeping running through her head because _this can’t be real._ “His sword… He killed me… Is this… Is this a dream?”   
  
“No, Dami,” Bruce pulls her towards him again, presses his forehead to hers. “You’re wide awake. You’re alive and here with me. We got you.”  
  
She laughs, a little, smiles almost, with the relief of it all. She’s exhausted and she thinks that, if Bruce let go of her shoulders she would collapse right there on the floor of the cave.

__________

Bruce carries her to her bedroom. She doesn't even protest, because she is bone tired and almost definitely _not_ because she’s still scared that if she lets go, the whole world will disappear from her again. She has her head resting on his shoulder, barely focusing on the floor as it moves past her, but when she lifts her eyes Dick is following and he sticks his tongue out at her so she tries a weak smile. He breaks into a full blown grin, and his eyes are bright with unshed tears.  
  
Her room is exactly how she left it. She wonders if it’s because no one ever comes in here, or because they always do. And isn’t that weird, that her father is setting her down on the very same bed where he may have mourned her.  
  
Dick comes into her room as well, helps tuck her in. Dami’s eyes are closed but she can still feel Bruce’s hand in her hair, sense people standing around her. she opens one eye and gives Dick a _look_.  
  
He takes the hint, leans down to kiss her forehead, whispers, “It’s great to have you back.” He leaves, then it’s just her and Bruce.  
  
Dami is asleep almost immediately, but she swears she hears someone say, “I love you so much,” just before she’s completely gone.

__________  
  
When she sleeps, she dreams of two things.  
  
Sometimes, she dreams of being disconnected, stuck in nothingness and at complete peace. She feels thousands of years old those nights, a body of introspection, an abstract concept beyond anything mortal. She wakes up and looks in the mirror and tries to see her soul in her eyes but can’t quite grasp what’s past bright blue irises.  
  
Other nights, she dreams of her death. Over and over, a constant, inescapable torture. Her mother is always there, telling Dami that she is a disappointment, a failure, never good enough. When she finally manages to surface from the nightmares, crying, screaming sometimes, she drags herself into the bathroom. She wants the mirror to show strength, to remind her that she is a Wayne, but all she finds is Talia still mocking her in her features.  
  
She is back for a week before she takes scissors to the plait that drapes down her back. She runs her fingers through her leftover hair, continues cutting until she has bangs and her hair barely covers her ears. It’s rough and shaggy and she loves it.  
  
When someone asks (Dick, with his sad puppy-dog eyes and misplaced parental concern) she says that her hair only got in the way, it was a liability. No one mentions that it had never caused her problems before.

__________

Everything is different now, and she can’t work out if it’s her or everyone else. It’s like everything has shifted two centimetres to the left and it’s throwing her off balance. At first she thinks she’s just too tired to be angry, her aching body not able to stand up and start confrontations, but she is quickly back to training and even after she is back on the streets (a month after her resurrection) as Robin, she just doesn't bother with it.  
  
Her new temperament does wonders for her relationships. Tim still calls her demon sometimes, and Jason annoys her into into insulting him, but there’s no venom behind it. Stephanie has fun styling Dami’s hair and showing her what she can do with different products. They are almost, precariously, acting like siblings.

Colin shows up at the manor almost three weeks After, and if his eyes are a little red, Dami doesn't say anything. They don’t talk about anything that’s happened - he asks if she’s wants to play Call of Duty and she huffs and tells him it’s a terrible game, and she’d rather play anything but. Even when they play co-op games they get competitive with each other, and Colin get’s frustrated, and starts using ridiculous insults. She laughs for the first time since coming back.

Bruce is different, as well. She’s used to having to read heavily into his actions - knows that Dick is an anomaly in this family when it comes to the full spectrum of emotions - but she finds she doesn't have to so much anymore. It’s almost subtle, but he spends time around her for no reason - starts doing WE work outside his office, lets her come down to the cave whilst others are on patrol so she can help man the computers, even though Alfred reminds him that she should be resting.

She thinks that Bruce understands that she’s restless. Yes, she’s still recovering, and spends most her time the first few days in her room, then walking around the manor until she’s wiped of energy again, but she can’t stand the inactivity. It’s in her blood, that need to move, to be _doing something._

She settles for curling up in the big chair in the cave, monitoring everyone on duty. One time, when it’s still relatively early for them and there’s nothing really going on, so the comms are just filled with chatter, Dick asks, “how you doing, little D?”

 Dami says dryly, “Well, I'm still alive,” and Jason bursts out laughing. 

 There’s a crackle that she thinks is Dick sighing, followed by “Thanks, D,” but it’s a little hard to hear over Stephanie saying “nice.”


	2. I Wish I Cared Less (But I'm Afraid I Don't)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 'Colin pats Dami’s side, says “try to survive.” She moans in response.'
> 
> Or, the one where Dami's period sucks, and she has a lot of emotions.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I gave Dami almost the worst cycle anyone can have, minus vomiting and passing out really.  
> Dami is kind of an unreliable narrator sometimes, but definitely in this chapter because of heightened emotions. I drew a lot on my own experiences with the relationships in this chapter so I guess if you don't like the characterization all I can say is, everyone's experience is different but hey I'd love to see anyone's opinions if they think this should have been different.
> 
> Also, on ignoring canon, i haven't read anything from gotham academy, so if maps is really off, its because it's based on characterization from fanfic and not the actual canon material. Most of the events of the GA comics don't happen in this 'verse.
> 
> Chapter title is from the Royal Blood song Careless

Age thirteen is a trying time for Dami. Her body changes constantly, and she has to continually refine her moves to keep up with it. Her chest is the biggest problem, throwing her off balance and getting in the way. She’s pretty sure that only a year ago she was an A cup, able to get away with not wearing a bra half the time, but now as a DD not even the best quality sports bras can make her flat, and the Robin costume has to be adjusted to allow for her bust.

Really, she can deal with that. She was prepared for this happening, considering her mother’s anatomy. What she wasn’t ready for, was how absolutely terrible her menstrual cycle would be.

She could definitely do without the cramps. Every three weeks - some unfair fault in her physiology - like clockwork. The only solace she can take from it is that even though the bleeding lasts seven days (sometimes eight, like she’s actually been cursed to suffer terrible periods), the really bad cramps are only for the first few.

Maps - ever the experienced one, with a year and a half up on Dami - shows her how to massage the cramps away, digging her fingers into Dami’s lower back, says “It’s hard to do on yourself, you can’t get the right angle,” when Dami sighs in relief, and, “you know you could ask to go on birth control, it would help a lot, especially with heavy bleeding and how often they are for you.”

Dami hums in acknowledgment as Maps roles away from her, stretching out on Dami’s bed next to where she’s buried her face in a cushion. They relax for a minute - the two of them together and Colin in the chair next to the bed - just listening to Maps’ iPod go through a playlist called “Gotham Air”.

Dami groans as the cramps come back, loudly enough to be heard over the top of Royal Blood blasting from the speakers. Colin laughs, but also leans forward to stroke her shoulder.

“Have you taken any painkillers?” Maps asks, reaching for the remote to turn the music down.

“No. I figured, I’m in a lot of pain. I want to suffer through every terrible second of it.” She hisses, grinding her teeth through a particularly painful spasm. “Yes. Two hours ago.”

“The sarcasm is unnecessary, but I’ll let it slide because you feel icky.” Maps slides off the bed, grabs a little packet out of her bag. “Try these. They’re just off the shelf stuff, but specifically for period pains, so. I don’t know, it might be a bit better.” She frowns at Dami as she turns carefully to curl up on her side.

There’s a knock on the door, and Dami is too busy breathing through the pain, so Colin calls, “come in!”

Dick slips through the door. “Hey, it’s getting late. I thought I’d drop you kids off before I head home?”

“Sure, thanks,” Maps says brightly as she gathers her stuff, moving the pain relief onto Dami’s night stand.

Colin pats Dami’s side, says “try to survive.” She moans in response.

Once they’ve left the room Dick closes the door and sits next to her. He runs his hand in circles around the small of her back. “So, I take it you're not going out tonight?”  
  
“I guess fucking not,” She snaps. It’s beyond frustrating, but she’s not stupid, she can barely even walk.

“Okay. I’m sorry.” He doesn’t stop rubbing her back and it’s starting to help a little.

“Not your fault,” she mumbles. She’s starting to relax a little and almost feels like she could actually sleep despite the cramps.  
  
“Yeah, but it sucks.” He sits for a minute in silence with her. “I better go, but I’ll come check on you before heading out tonight, okay?”

“Wait,” she pushes herself up so they’re almost level. “You’re not staying? but…” Alfred is on holiday, and she wouldn’t be left in the Manor all alone. “Tim?” Dick shakes his head ‘no’. “Stephanie? _Jason_?” No and no.

“Actually, Bruce is gonna stay with you tonight.” Dick gives her a funny look. “Is that… okay?”

“What? Yes. I just. Wasn’t expecting that.” She drops back down when her uterus lets her know that she’s been stretching her muscles too long.

“See you in a bit.” Dick leaves but doesn’t shut her door completely. She’s unreasonably upset about the door being ever so slightly open, but can’t bring herself to ruin the break in pain she’s currently experiencing.

Dami is almost falling asleep when her phone starts beeping; she realises it’s her alarm. Turning it off, she grabs a tampon out of the box in her underwear draw and slips to the bathroom.

When she’s done and back on her bed, all the relaxation is gone and she’s back to being uncomfortable, exhausted and irritable. She tosses and turns until her bed is a mess, gives up and heads to the kitchen. She’s just passing the front door when it opens and Dick comes in.

She waves her hot water bottle in greeting, and Dick follows her to the kitchen.

Dami gets a glass of water to take Maps’ painkillers and starts boiling the kettle. She sits down, closes her eyes, trying to regulate her breathing again, running her hand over her stomach.

The kettle whistles and Dami goes to get up but Dick says “I got it,” and soon she has both the hot water bottle resting against her abdomen and a mug of green tea in her hands.

Alfred the Cat runs in, tail up in the air and fur puffy, obviously annoyed at something. He hops up on Dami’s lap, curling next to the warmth of the water bottle. Jason follows soon after, leather boots clomping on the tiles.

“Man, why does that mangy thing hate me?” He says, going over to raid the fridge.

“Good kitty.” Dami scratches behind Alfred the Cat’s ear and he purrs.

“I would beat you up for that but you look like shit and I’d feel bad.” He says, good naturedly, of course.

Dami “Tt”s and sips at her tea. “How long until you’re going out?” She sets the mug down, moves the hot water bottle behind her so it’s working on the muscles in her back.

“Probably half an hour? I think everyone else who’s coming here is already in the cave. You heading down as well?” Dick grabs a slab of dark chocolate from the cupboard and offers it to her. She shakes her head and pushes it away.

“No, I think I’m going to try and catch up on some sleep whilst I can.” Maps was right, the pain is slightly easier than normal, but not enough to actually be comfortable. Still, she knows from experience that if she was going to be able to sleep through this, it’s now or never. 

________

 An hour and a half later, Dami is ready to murder someone. She can’t stand to even be in her room anymore, so takes of walking through the Manor, hugging the cooling water bottle to her skin.

The cramps make her legs go stiff and then weak and stiff again, and she’s barely a few corridors down from her room when she has to sink to the floor and whimper.

“... Dami?” Bruce calls, because of course he’s still in his office at one a.m. She doesn’t reply, but he comes out to find her anyway, curled up on the floor outside his door. “How are you feeling?” he says and… Is he _joking?_ she’s pretty sure that’s as close as Bruce has ever got to humour and it’s _really not helpful right now_.

She hums, loud and forceful, in a vain attempt to overcome the pain as her uterus gives one hell of a contraction. She curls up even tighter on herself and gasps when it doesn’t let up.

Bruce kneels down to her, and she almost thinks he’s going to rub her back like Dick does, but of course he doesn’t. Instead he wraps an arm around her shoulders and pulls her up, helping her keep the water bottle against her even as her legs barely support her.

“Titus not with you?” Bruce asks as he helps her into his office.

“No.” She knows she sounds petulant, but no one else has to suffer like this - even the other female vigilantes of Gotham don’t have this terrible a cycle - so she thinks she’s at least a little entitled to.  “He got annoyed with me moving to much to - _ah_ \- sleep next to me. Alfred the Cat, too.”

She almost screams - she kind of does scream, sort of - because the next cramp is by far the worst pain she has ever felt in her life. And she’s _died,_ so it has a lot to live up to.

Dami’s feet completely leave the ground as tears spring in her eyes. She brings her knees up to her chest, and Bruce has to quickly grab her properly so that she doesn’t fall. She ends up sort of sideways in his grip, one of his arms under her knees, holding her shoulder with the other hand, her legs pressed against his stomach and face buried in the crook of his neck as she cries out.

He carries her over to the sofa against the wall and sits down with her, so that she is curled up into Bruce’s side with his arm holding her there.

“Can’t sleep?” He brushes her hair back and out of her face.

“No,” she grouses. “I’ve been in constant pain for two days. I can’t relax, let alone sleep.”  
  
Bruce doesn’t say anything, just keeps running his fingers through her hair. Eventually she needs to move again, so Dami twists in Bruce’s arm so that she is facing away from him, but with her body curled against his and her head on his forearm.

“Would you… Do you want to go?” Dami is aware that she has basically trapped Bruce on the sofa, with his arm pinned behind her, can see the glow of his laptop on the desk where he is probably trying to do Very Important Work, but she doesn’t particularly care.

“No but… could you help? Just with- it gets better when someone massages my back but I can’t do it properly myself.” She can feel heat on her cheeks, is glad that Bruce can’t see her probably pink face.

Bruce doesn’t say anything for a good minute, in what Dami assumes is stunned silence, but his voice is calm and measured when he does speak. “Yes. Show me what to do.”

She has to shift again, firstly to free Bruce’s arm, but also so that she can sit sideways on the sofa, hugging a pillow.

“Start here on both sides,” she presses her thumb into the very top of her hip, “really push in, small circles, going down and inwards to the base of my spin.”

She can barely breathe for the pain, and each gasp sounds sharp and tear-filled. Her muscles spasm under Bruce’s hands and he’s being too delicate. He always acts like she’s breakable - it doesn’t matter what she does, how much she has tried to prove her worth over the years, Bruce cannot seem to see her as anything but fragile; _weak._

“You’re not-” she starts fiercely, but is overcome by tears - not over the pain, not completely anyway, but she doesn’t really know what else, just that she is upset and angry over _something._ “I’m not going to break in half!”

“Dami? What- What’s wrong?” Bruce’s hands hover over her shoulder, like he’s not sure if he’s suppose to comfort her or stay away. And that’s just it isn’t it? Everybody else can treat her like a person, just with the added complication of being a trained child assassin.

Bruce can handle child soldiers. To him, her humanity is what makes her complicated. She knows she has some issues, but she’s not a _broken toy_ , and she doesn’t need the way that her father tiptoes around her like she’s ready to snap.

“Nothing! Everything! I don’t know!” Dami swipes furiously at her eyes, presses her face into the pillow. “Can you just not do this for one night!?”

“What am I doing?” Bruce sounds annoyed; he’s good at hiding it, sure, but Dami is also very good at reading people. She’s pretty sure that if she didn’t look so pitiful right now, this would go how most arguments with Bruce go - she would yell, he would yell back, they would both stubbornly refuse to give in, then not speak for a week.

But she does look absolutely terrible, and she thinks Bruce is putting her angry outburst down to hormones. Like she hasn’t been pulling this shit since she was ten. Although, the crying is a gift from puberty.

“Nothing, it doesn’t matter.”

“Dami, how can I know what I’ve done to upset you if you don't tell me.” He’s still hovering. Always there but never doing anything, and is it any wonder that she feels so much closer to Dick, with his easily won affection and obvious love.

“It’s fine. Can you just,” she sighs, “do this? properly. You’re not going to hurt me, I promise.”

“You’re right, I’m sorry.” She thinks it should be tomorrow’s headline: _World’s Greatest Detective: First Father To Work Out Teenage Daughter’s Emotions._

She sighs happily into her pillow as the contractions relax, the pain receding.

“Better?” Bruce asks after a while, voice low and light. Dami hums happily in reply. She’s too tired to lift her head up off the pillow, and her shoulders are drooping down. “Dami, you know I only want you to be happy, and have as close to normal a childhood as you can.”

She says sleepily, “we passed normal a long time ago.” Bruce laughs, a little.


	3. You're In The Middle Of The Ride

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 'Somehow Dami managed to ignore anything to do with weddings, up to and including her own part in it. As a bridesmaid.'
> 
> Or, the one where Bruce and Selina are engaged, and there is lots of girl bonding time. Also, more things happen in this 'verse that I give zero explanation for.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a prompt fill for Talongirlwonder who asked for 'Forced Girl bonding time with Bette and Steph? (drag Kate and her twin sister along for the ride to lol!!) I think a fem!dami and Harper Row might get along to.'
> 
> Not quite what you asked for, but pretty darn close. I had immense writers block and i have exams coming up (excuses, excuses).
> 
> There are two main things you can blame for this chapter, and that is the previously mentioned writers block that I powered through, and the amount of Say Yes To The Dress I watched whilst writing this. Also, Dami is 16 in this - I never actually wrote that into the chapter (whoops).
> 
> Chapter title from The Middle by Jimmy Eat World

Dami likes Selina. It might be mostly because Selina has an infinite number of pet cats and, as Maps puts it, Dami was probably a crazy cat lady in a past life. But either way, if Selina were to be around permanently, it wouldn't be the worst thing. 

So when Bruce and Selina announce their engagement at breakfast, all Dami says is, “finally,” before gathering Alfred the Cat up in her arms to stop him pestering his namesake for food and going back to bed (because does no one realise nine a.m. is a crazy time to be awake on a saturday?).

For a while nothing much changes, except Selina spending more time at the manor, slowly moving her stuff across from her apartment. Suddenly there are five more cats around the manor and Alfred the Cat hates every one of them. Dami has a lot of scratches on her hands from breaking up fights.

Four year old Helena is often found with her old sister - the little girl adores Dami for some reason, and in return Dami attempts to foster normal interests in the little girl’s life. Helena loves Minecraft already and when she asks Dami to build a bat signal in her world it almost breaks her heart. (Dami’s not projecting. She’s  _ not _ ).

Somehow Dami managed to ignore anything to do with weddings, up to and including her own part in it. As a bridesmaid.

“This is hell on earth.” The bridal shop is empty. The wedding is being held in secret, so every wedding activity involves buying the silence of every shop owner and planner. Along with the cost of having Gotham’s most elite designer gown studio to themselves for the day, the wedding is racking up an outrageous bill, and that’s before anything for the actual wedding has been payed for.

Stephanie throws her arm around Dami’s shoulder, pulling her into a half-hug. “Come on. This is fun. Dress shopping is fun.”

Dami glares. “Nothing about this is enjoyable.”

“You haven’t even looked at any of the dresses yet, give it a try! Besides, I thought you liked this sort of stuff.”

“I do not!” Dami shakes Steph’s arm off. “I am interested in  _ make-up _ , in a purely functional approach.” It’s not untrue. She likes the way that she can manipulate her facial features with something as simple as thick eye liner, or bright lipstick, or getting yellow and pink eyeshadow to blend perfectly.

Purely functional.

“That perfect liquid line tells a different story, kid. Eyebrows on point, by the way.” Steph walks off into the racks of dresses with the rest of the bridesmaids.

All nine of them, because this is a crazy rich person wedding and the dress budget is so big the limit is almost non-existent.

Pamela and Harley fawn over a particularly low cut, short looking dress that Dami is pretty sure Bruce would have an aneurysm over if she wore it. Harper drifts towards a rack of black dresses, a bit away from the others, and starts going through them. Dami watches her pull out a lacey dress and hold it consideringly. It’s a beautiful dress, almost fairy like, if a little gothic. Harper adds it to the growing pile of the bridesmaids choices.

Dami carries on walking across the studio, intent on joining Barbara, Cassandra and Steph where they are debating appropriate skirt length for the wedding. Instead of actually participating, she slips one earbud in and turns her iPod on a low volume, working her way through a classic rock playlist as she sifts through racks.

Pam and Harley, as the maids of honor, get called away first by the sales assistant to help Selina choose wedding dresses. Soon, they are all herded into the bride's section of the store and sat at two sofas facing a runway and platform. Pam and Harley whisper conspiratorially to each other, hushing up in giggles as Kate and Bette perch next to them.

Barbara takes the space between the sofas, with Stephanie, Harper, and Dami sitting on the other, Cassandra standing behind to loop her arms around Steph. Dami slips her phone out of her pocket and quickly checks notifications, skim reads a group chat between her, Maps and Colin, and turns down a party invite on Facebook, until the sales assistant comes back.

“If we’re all ready?” The bubbly girl says, turning to where the runway leads into fitting rooms.

Selina is absolutely stunning as she walks across the room. Dami hears Harper gasp quietly beside her, and she doesn’t blame her.

Her dress isn’t what Dami had expected. Where she is used to seeing Selina in figure hugging, smooth outfits, the A line dress is simple and graceful. With a sweetheart neckline and silver beading around the waist, the dress is just perfect.

Selina faces them, away from the mirrors. Dami can tell from her expression, the small smile and bright eyes, that this - all of it, the dress, the wedding - means everything to her. The twitch of her cheeks, where her smile doesn’t quite falter, screams nervous hope.

“So, bridesmaids,” the sales assistant starts, “What are we thinking?”

“Oh, wow, Selina. Wow.” Barbara says breathlessly. Everyone else seems to agree, in that the entire group is speechless.

“Does it look… Oh, I don’t know.” Selina’s shoulders drop ever so slightly. “Do I look like a bride?”

Harley hops up and  _ squeals _ , and the hand Pam has around her waist is probably the only thing stopping her from tackling Selina to the ground.

“Selina, hon, you look absolutely stunning.” Bette has a hand over her heart as she talks, staring up at Selina as if in wonder of her beauty.

“Before you turn around I just want to…” The assistant trails off as she picks up some fabric from one of the little tables. She stands on her tiptoes to slip the veil into Selina’s hair.

Selina turns then, and almost immediately her hand comes up to her mouth and tears form in her eyes.

“Good tears?” Harper calls, and Selina nods frantically. She pulls her hand away to fan at her face, revealing her wide smile.

“So I take it this is your dress?” the assistant beams, and Selina can’t form words enough to actually say the word  _ ‘yes’  _ but the girl walks off to sort out the order and give them some alone time.

________

By the time the wedding is a month away, Dami is fed up of bridal breakfasts, lunches, and brunches. She may be on the antisocial side, but she’s pretty sure the average person cannot handle that much talk about flowers and cake and floor plans.    
  
“We need to get the bachelorette party planned,” Stephanie says, at 7AM. On a Sunday.

“Why are you even here right now?” Dami has her head on the breakfast table and is struggling to stay awake.

“Rude. I stayed the night. Don’t tell Bruce.” 

“Father already knows. Like anybody could get within 100 metres of Cass without Bruce knowing.” Dami puts both palms flat on the table, pushes herself into a sitting position, then sinks into her seat until she can comfortably rest her head on the back. 

“Uh, yikes - and here I was, thinking I’d actually got one over on him.” Steph sighs heavily. “I kinda thought he’d show up in my apartment to threaten me, or something.”

Dami opens one eye and stares at Steph. “If you think Father would ever acknowledge Cass’ relationship status, you have severely overestimated him.”   
  
Steph laughs. “God, I can’t believe you’re actually Bruce’s flesh and blood.”

Dami sits up properly then, looking mildly offended. “What’s that supposed to mean? So is Helena.”

“Yes, but Helena is four and has Selena to balance her out. You had ninja camp. Not the same.”

“I guess the rest of you are just awful influences.” Steph bows in her seat. “Also, I’m pretty sure half my personality has just been slowly replaced by Maps’ nonstop chatter about clothes, and celebrities, and boys, and-”

“Wait, Maps? Really? I didn’t think she was the kind of girl to care about boys…” Steph gives Dami a weird look that she is way too tired to properly acknowledge.

“She more cares about when boys like her. She discovered that every girl at our school is rated on the boys toilet wall and her score is all she went on about for a week.”    
  
Steph stares of to the side for a few seconds, until her eyes snap back to Dami. “So is this like a ranking, or…?”

“A score out of a hundred.” The corners of Dami’s mouth turn up slightly.

“I bet you got full marks.” 

“Ninety, actually.” 

Steph looks confused. “From what I remember of teenage boys, that doesn’t sound right.”

“Apparently I lost points for being so terrifying, none of the boys at my school can willingly talk to me.” Steph laughs herself breathless.

“That sounds more like it.” Steph takes a second to compose herself before saying, “Okay, so we need to have a planning lunch for the bachelorette party.” Dami groans. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've actually got some more bonding themed chapters planned for the future (the very distant future if it keeps taking me 4 months to write one chapter). Please kudos and comment, it really does help :)


End file.
